


The Flowers I Give You

by SilentStudies



Category: EXO (Band), K-pop
Genre: Fluff and Angst, M/M, Slow Burn, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-06
Updated: 2018-03-06
Packaged: 2019-03-27 17:07:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13885290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentStudies/pseuds/SilentStudies
Summary: On a rainy day, they meet. And they become connected in ways they could never imagine.





	The Flowers I Give You

It’s a gloomy day, the rain keeping the customers away. The smell of wet clay and rain mixed makes Luhan feel calm. He spins the wheel and molds the clay, it getting his fingers dirty and it gets stuck under his nails. He carefully moves his hands around the clay and hums the song he heard the lady next door sing this morning.

His father comes over at some point to finish making the vase and tells Luhan to go eat. Washing his hands in the rain pouring outside the shop, he goes over to his mother who made rice and fish for them to eat. Luhan has no appetite but the smell of food is irresistible and he never really could say no. He and his mother eat in silence, listening to the rain and the faint sound of the wheel spinning. 

Living in the capital brings some trouble with the influx of foreigners coming to sell items. Copper coins his family has is stored in their basement, the door to it being hidden beneath a large pot. Money is something Luhan cares a lot about because it determines his place in society. The richer you are, people view you better. 

A wealthy Korean family recently moved into town, but it's not that strange anymore. Lots of Koreans have been moving here for reasons Luhan doesn't care much about. The family lives in the recently built siheyuan. It's not that large, but it shows their wealth and Luhan feels slightly jealous of their fortune. His family lives in their shop, and are very frugal.

Luhan feels muted because of the gloomy atmosphere and the lack of customers. He wishes that they were wealthy enough to afford another wheel so they can make more things to sell, but alas the money is hidden. All saved for a rainy day, and apparently not this one. Luhan sighs, and closes his eyes, listening to the sounds of his mother clearing the table, and his father shaping the clay into a vase, one that Luhan was almost done with too. His father always wants to put their unique finishing touch to all pieces made, and Luhan still has difficulty doing it, so he always takes over near the end of a project.

Opening his eyes, he looks over to the window showing the street, and a lone person walking down it, drenched in the rain. Luhan wonders who they must be, judging from the clothing, they had to be wealthy, and perhaps foreign. Luhan moves closer to the window and peers out, staring at the person. He couldn't be the only one who noticed, so why isn't anyone helping him? 

Luhan opens the door and steps out into the rain. He's not going to let some person outside in the rain to possibly get sick. If they do, everyone will get sick. Then again, Luhan is the one that's most likely going to get sick. He's very fragile in that sense.

"Hey! Are you okay? Come with me," Luhan shouts as he jogs over to the person in colorful garb.

The person looks up at him, and Luhan is suddenly breathless. It's a man, and he's never seen someone so beautiful before. Luhan reaches out and grabs the man's hand. The other squeezes Luhan's hand, and Luhan briskly walks them over to his storefront house. 

Luhan steps through the already open door and drags the man to the kitchen. Hot tea always warms someone up, and he seems to need it. Luhan warms the water over the fireplace. And looks behind him to see the man standing behind him, staring at him with a slight smile.

"Who are you?" Luhan asks quietly, turning around to formally address the man.

"I'm Minseok, who are you?" Minseok asks with a slight accent. He must be Korean; there are a lot of Koreans in this area now, that must be it.

"I'm Luhan. I hope some barley tea is okay," Luhan says, turning around again to lift the teapot away from the fire. Opening the teapot, he sets it down carefully on a counter and grabs some dried herbs that are laid out in some linen near the sink, then sprinkles them in the pot. He looks over to Minseok and sees that he's sitting down on a stool, watching him. Luhan feels his face become warm; he's embarrassed by his clothing, covered in dried clay that became wet due to the rain. Compared to the beautiful silk that Minseok is wearing, he can already feel the difference in class.

Luhan lets the tea sit for a few moments, then takes out to cups and fills them halfway, not sure how much Minseok wanted to drink. Minseok smiles at him and accepts the cup with two hands. Luhan sits down on the stool next to Minseok and sips his tea. There's a calm in the air, despite Luhan's nervousness, and Luhan watches Minseok drink his tea in small, careful sips before he sets the cup down. 

"Is this a pottery shop?" Minseok asks.

"It is, we sell clay and glass pottery," Luhan says, also setting his cup down.

"I find pottery a beneficial form of art. It can be delicate, but strong at the same time. It's admirable that you have useful skills, while I'm just a pawn in politics," Minseok says as he clasps his hands together. 

Luhan isn't sure how to respond to such a personal statement when they barely know each other. He doesn't want to seem aloof and brush off the compliment, and he also doesn't want to offend a noble. The mention of politics puts a tense atmosphere around them. Luhan always made a point to stay out of it, so he twists his mouth in thought of how to respond.

"Ah, I'm sorry. That was a bit much for someone I've barely met to lay my troubles upon. I hope you'll forgive me." Minseok says as he looks over to Luhan, who was still facing Minseok. 

Their eyes meet, and Luhan feels uncomfortable to have someone look at him, expecting something that he can't give.

"Politics are simply a play of power; I don't find it interesting to follow. We are all pawns in a way, controlled by something greater. Whether it be by money or other people, we all have something ruling over us, taking up our entire lives," Luhan ponders aloud. 

He looks over at Minseok to see a small smile on his face. "That is true, in the end, we are all controlled by something, and for me, it happens to be my father."

Luhan hums and looks out the window in front of him. The rain has stopped, and he peeks into Minseok's cup to find it empty. It seems that their brief moment together is now over. 

"It was nice meeting you, Minseok. I hope we have a chance to meet once more," Luhan says as he slips off the stool. Minseok follows his lead, and they both bow slightly. Minseok moves to walk out the door, and Luhan watches him leave. Luhan wonders if he'll ever see him again. The chances of it are highly unlikely.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are nice and highly appreciated. 
> 
> [tumblr](https://thoughtssilent.tumblr.com)|[twitter](https://twitter.com/hyuhanjoon)


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